AT&T Brings Google Fiber Competitor to Austin

Austin residents are about to get some major Internets: after being chosen by Google to be the second city involved in its high-speed Google Fiber roll-out (after Kansas City), AT&T announced yesterday that it would bring rival fiber service Project VIP to the home of South By Southwest.

Photo: Stu Seeger

The network fiber service, which would provide "speeds up to 1 gigabit per second," according to the company's press release, doesn't have an expected roll-out date. However, it's likely that we'll see both Project VIP and Google Fiber racing to get an early jump and secure Austinites' loyalties.

Gigabit network Internet services are drool-worthy for their lightning-fast speeds, and Kansas City has already experienced significant growth in the startup world, developing its own Kansas City Startup Village. It's unsurprising that Google Fiber would choose Austin, a small town with lots of clout thanks to South By Southwest Interactive, but this is the first time both Google and AT&T will go head-to-head in the gigabit network arena.

What do you think of Austin's Internet bonanza? Let us know in the comments.

Lauren Hockenson is a tech reporter and 8-bit enthusiast who dreams of being a wizard. She can be found on MyIGN at lhockenson or on Twitter at @lhockenson.